Open from May 1st to October 18, 1896, for the Swiss National Exhibition in Geneva, the Sapajou (Capuchin Monkey) shadow theatre scheduled a dozen shadow plays very much reminiscent of the Parisian shows put on at the Chat Noir (1885-1896). The artists who collaborated on the plays (painters, musicians, poets) were however anxious to add a national element to their repertoire and to assert their singular critical positioning; they did so mostly through their weekly review Le Sapajou. Saying they missed the “child’s plays” of primitive monkeys, they derided the ambient Darwinian discourse: “the fin-de-siècle capuchin moneys […] have better things to do; the necessities of life and the “struggle for life” impose social duties on them and force them to choose a career”. During the daily performances of the theatre, the pianist Gustave Ferrari played the musical accompaniment, and H. Bertilliot narrated the play. The composer and educator Émile Jaques-Dalcroze often attended the gala events and sometimes improvised tunes on the piano.

The poet Jules Cougnard wrote about Le Mariage au désert (The Wedding in the desert) in an article dedicated to the Théâtre du Sapajou: “Maurice Potter stages a series of episodes from Arab life, which he is perfectly familiar with as a painter, since he has experienced it for a long time.” According to him, the play is a “light-hearted story whose heroine is an English sweetheart—Miss Maud”. It features all the elements of Orientalism: a desert as the scenery, with lions and caravans, Ouled Naïl female dancers with shimmery costumes, as well as traditional music (Nouba) and cuisine (Turkish delights, couscous). The use of colourful silhouettes adds to the intended marvellous effect. The Algerian Tirailleurs and the song La Casquette de Bugeaud (Bugeaud’s cap, written in 1844 and one of the songs of the Army of Africa) are reminders that the play is set during the French conquest of Algeria.

The Plumcake family arrives in Biskra. The wedding of their daughter, Miss Maud, will happen in the Sahara; however, their arrival in the oasis of merrymaking is delayed: they cross paths with a lion and get lost; a caravan comes by and saves the lost family. The spectacular ceremony can finally take place: the procession and dances begin.